Chief Economist & Political Strategist, CrossASEAN Research

Prasenjit K. Basu

Chief Economist & Political Strategist

CrossASEAN Research

At CrossASEAN Research we strive to produce unbiased and differentiated on the ground insights on companies across South East Asia. Our Research is produced for the most part after face to face meetings and conversations with company management to dig deep into the long term vision and strategy of the companies we cover. We seek to deliver investable and actionable themes on sectors and markets across SE Asia, often in collaboration with other Insight Providers across the region, pooling the vast experience of the analysts within the Smartkarma Ecosystem. We also offer bespoke work and tailor made trips for our clients. 

Insights across South East Asia

Macroeconomics

<ul>
<li>RBI kept the policy rate unchanged and retained a neutral policy stance. But (in concert with MoF), a more conducive climate was created for foreign inflows into India's debt markets.  </li>
<li>Real GDP grew 7.8%YoY in Q4/FY26 with a current account surplus (0.7% of GDP). Our forecast for core CPI inflation is 4.2%, headline 4.8%, and no rate hikes in FY27.</li>
<li>With services (52% of the economy) growing 9%+, we expect real GDP to grow 7.3% in FY27, and strong net FDI and FPI inflows to bolster INR. Bullish. </li>
</ul>


RBI kept the policy rate unchanged and retained a neutral policy stance. But (in concert with MoF), a more conducive climate was created for foreign inflows into India's debt markets.  
Real GDP grew 7.8%YoY in Q4/FY26 with a current account surplus (0.7% of GDP). Our forecast for core CPI inflation is 4.2%, headline 4.8%, and no rate hikes in FY27.
With services (52% of the economy) growing 9%+, we expect real GDP to grow 7.3% in FY27, and strong net FDI and FPI inflows to bolster INR. Bullish. 


India: No Rate Hike in FY27, as Growth Slows a Tad and CAD Widens to 1% of GDP

APAC IPOs & Placements, Aequitas Research

Akshat Shah

APAC IPOs & Placements

IPOs and Placements coverage across Asia Pacific

Aequitas Research

We cover all listing across the Asia Pacific along with follow-up placements. As of Dec 2020, our team had covered 539 IPOs with a hit rate of 73.5% and 685 placements with a hit rate of 66.8%.

We combine fundamental bottom-up views with our proprietary quantitative framework to provide a holistic coverage across new listings and placements. Our coverage includes pre-IPO notes before the deal is launched, follow-up analysis once the deal is live and post-listing trading analysis as well.

Equity Capital Markets

Avaada Electro Limited / Equity Capital Markets

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/avaada-electro-limited" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:58612:1" rel="noopener">Avaada Electro Limited (2596819D IN)</a> is looking to raise around US$800m in its upcoming India IPO. It is a vertically integrated solar photovoltaic manufacturer, producing high-efficiency solar cells and modules.</li>
<li>Avaada Electro Limited (AEL) benefits from strong demand visibility through its group's renewable IPP, while its manufacturing platform is well aligned with India's push towards domestic solar manufacturing requirements.</li>
<li>In this note, we look at the firm’s past performance.</li>
</ul>



Avaada Electro Limited (2596819D IN) is looking to raise around US$800m in its upcoming India IPO. It is a vertically integrated solar photovoltaic manufacturer, producing high-efficiency solar cells and modules.
Avaada Electro Limited (AEL) benefits from strong demand visibility through its group's renewable IPP, while its manufacturing platform is well aligned with India's push towards domestic solar manufacturing requirements.
In this note, we look at the firm’s past performance.


Aequitas: Avaada Electro Pre-IPO - Offtake Visibility but Concentration and Leverage Risks Remain

Asian Hedge Fund Manager, Long Short Equity, Macro

David Mudd

Cross Asset Strategy

<ul>
<li>The Asian Alpha Hedge Portfolio performance in 1Q26 was +17.83% versus its benchmark performance of +1.79% for an outperformance of 16.04%.</li>
<li>Over the last year, AAHP's Sharpe ratio is 4.39 with a mean excess annualized return of 69%.  The portfolio has a gross and net exposure of 132% and +30%, respectively.</li>
<li>The war has changed outlooks for economies and markets in the region.  Accordingly, we reduced risk in the portfolio and adjusted our long/short exposures to reflect this new reality.</li>
</ul>


The Asian Alpha Hedge Portfolio performance in 1Q26 was +17.83% versus its benchmark performance of +1.79% for an outperformance of 16.04%.
Over the last year, AAHP's Sharpe ratio is 4.39 with a mean excess annualized return of 69%.  The portfolio has a gross and net exposure of 132% and +30%, respectively.
The war has changed outlooks for economies and markets in the region.  Accordingly, we reduced risk in the portfolio and adjusted our long/short exposures to reflect this new reality.


Asian Alpha Hedge Portfolio (March, 2026)

Market & Forensics Analyst, Beat the Street

Nimish Maheshwari

Market & Forensics Analyst

Beat the Street

Beat The Street was founded by Nimish Maheshwari and Sudarshan Bhandari, both of whom are Chartered Accountants by Profession, known for their expert analysis in the fields of Business, Sectoral analysis, and Corporate governance.

With a strong social media presence of 45,000+ Subscribers across various platforms, they are considered trusted voices in the industry. Their insights and analysis have been featured in some of India’s most prominent publications, including the Economic Times, Dalal Street Investment Journal, The Morning Context, and The Ken.

Their analysis on Bankrupt & Insolvent companies has been instrumental in saving investors from significant losses. They have a keen eye for identifying red flags and has identified exclusive redflags earlier in Vedanta, Nykaa, Dhani Services, Adani and many more.

Read Business Not Stock Prices

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul>
<li>India's PFBR at Kalpakkam achieved first criticality on April 6, 2026, marking the formal entry into Stage 2 of its three-stage nuclear programme.</li>
<li>India becomes only the second country after Russia to operate a commercial-scale fast breeder reactor, unlocking a pathway to its 508,000-tonne thorium reserve.</li>
<li>With the SHANTI Act, a Rs 20,000 crore SMR mission, and 100 GW nuclear ambitions by 2047, this milestone triggers a multi-decade capital deployment cycle.</li>
</ul>


India's PFBR at Kalpakkam achieved first criticality on April 6, 2026, marking the formal entry into Stage 2 of its three-stage nuclear programme.
India becomes only the second country after Russia to operate a commercial-scale fast breeder reactor, unlocking a pathway to its 508,000-tonne thorium reserve.
With the SHANTI Act, a Rs 20,000 crore SMR mission, and 100 GW nuclear ambitions by 2047, this milestone triggers a multi-decade capital deployment cycle.


India's Nuclear Sector: PFBR Achieved Criticality in Stage-2

India Equity Analyst - Fundamental & Thematic, Beat the Street

Sudarshan Bhandari

India Equity Analyst - Fundamental & Thematic

<ul>
<li>India’s Defense Acquisition Council approved INR 2.38 lakh crore proposals on March 27, 2026, taking total FY26 approvals to ~INR 9.3 lakh crore across Army, Air Force, and Coast Guard.</li>
<li>The pace and scale of approvals reinforce a multi-year procurement cycle, with indigenization becoming structural, expanding opportunities for domestic defence PSUs and private sector players.</li>
<li>
Stronger order visibility led by BEL, improving execution clarity for HAL, BDL’s indigenization progress, and Astra Microwave’s restructuring position the sector for sustained growth momentum.</li>
</ul>


India’s Defense Acquisition Council approved INR 2.38 lakh crore proposals on March 27, 2026, taking total FY26 approvals to ~INR 9.3 lakh crore across Army, Air Force, and Coast Guard.
The pace and scale of approvals reinforce a multi-year procurement cycle, with indigenization becoming structural, expanding opportunities for domestic defence PSUs and private sector players.

Stronger order visibility led by BEL, improving execution clarity for HAL, BDL’s indigenization progress, and Astra Microwave’s restructuring position the sector for sustained growth momentum.


Thematic Report: India Defense Sector - Moving Into Growth Phase

India

Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T) is an Indian multinational conglomerate specializing in engineering, procurement, construction (EPC), hi-tech manufacturing, and services. The company operates across diverse segments including infrastructure, hydrocarbon, power, heavy engineering, defense engineering, IT and technology services, financial services, and development projects. L&T was founded in 1938 and is headquartered in Mumbai, India.

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Larsen & Toubro (LTOD LI)

India: No Rate Hike in FY27, as Growth Slows a Tad and CAD Widens to 1% of GDP

RBI maintains policy rate, focuses on attracting foreign inflows to debt markets. With Services growing 9%, RGDP to grow 7.3% in FY27, as...

Prasenjit K. Basu

Aequitas: Avaada Electro Pre-IPO - Offtake Visibility but Concentration and Leverage Risks Remain

Avaada Electro Limited (AEL) is looking to raise around US$800m in its upcoming India IPO. In this note, we look at the firm’s past performance.

Akshat Shah

Asian Alpha Hedge Portfolio (March, 2026)

While we do not believe that the Iran conflict is close to a resolution, we believe that the U.S. side needs to reach one, and that will eventually...

David Mudd

India's Nuclear Sector: PFBR Achieved Criticality in Stage-2

India's PFBR achieves first criticality, marking entry into Stage 2 of nuclear programme, unlocking pathway to thorium reserve and triggering...

Nimish Maheshwari

Thematic Report: India Defense Sector - Moving Into Growth Phase

India's Defense Acquisition Council approved INR 2.38 lakh crore proposals, reinforcing a multi-year procurement cycle and boosting opportunities...

Sudarshan Bhandari

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52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

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India: No Rate Hike in FY27, as Growth Slows a Tad and CAD Widens to 1% of GDP

​RBI maintains policy rate, focuses on attracting foreign inflows to debt markets. With Services growing 9%, RGDP to grow 7.3% in FY27, as...

Prasenjit K. Basu

Aequitas: Avaada Electro Pre-IPO - Offtake Visibility but Concentration and Leverage Risks Remain

Avaada Electro Limited (AEL) is looking to raise around US$800m in its upcoming India IPO. In this note, we look at the firm’s past performance.

Akshat Shah

Asian Alpha Hedge Portfolio (March, 2026)

While we do not believe that the Iran conflict is close to a resolution, we believe that the U.S. side needs to reach one, and that will eventually...

David Mudd

India's Nuclear Sector: PFBR Achieved Criticality in Stage-2

​India's PFBR achieves first criticality, marking entry into Stage 2 of nuclear programme, unlocking pathway to thorium reserve and triggering...

Nimish Maheshwari

Thematic Report: India Defense Sector - Moving Into Growth Phase

​India's Defense Acquisition Council approved INR 2.38 lakh crore proposals, reinforcing a multi-year procurement cycle and boosting opportunities...

Sudarshan Bhandari

RBI maintains policy rate, focuses on attracting foreign inflows to debt markets. With Services growing 9%, RGDP to grow 7.3% in FY27, as...

India's PFBR achieves first criticality, marking entry into Stage 2 of nuclear programme, unlocking pathway to thorium reserve and triggering...

India's Defense Acquisition Council approved INR 2.38 lakh crore proposals, reinforcing a multi-year procurement cycle and boosting opportunities...